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Opel to Expand on Three Continents

After being revived in the eleventh hour last year, German carmaker Opel is now looking to take more of its business abroad. Although the carmaker is not yet quite sure an expansion to South America, Australia and South Africa is a means to increase sales, or merely a way to patch the negative figures in the existing markets, the move is strongly supported by the company's CEO, Nick Reilly.

"We are considering introducing or re-introducing Opel in a series of markets," Reilly told Autonews.

As with most carmakers, and especially German ones, China is the most luring of the untapped markets. A possible cannibalism with GM's Chevrolet and Buick models is ruled out by Reilly, who believes Opel appeals to a different type of customer.

The carmaker eyes launching the Astra and Insignia there, adding them to the existing Corsa and Zafira.

"We wouldn't suddenly sell 200,000 cars in China. Opel's image in China is strong but our product range is too small. "Opel is not a direct rival to other GM brands. For German brands with German technology, there's an especially high regard throughout the world," Reilly said.

For the other markets, Australia and South Africa, Opel has signals that their products would perform well, because of the strong image the brand has in the two markets.

In February, Reilly resented the carmakers’ viability plan, with revival measures including investments in the development of new products and also massive job cuts.
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About the author: Daniel Patrascu
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Daniel loves writing (or so he claims), and he uses this skill to offer readers a "behind the scenes" look at the automotive industry. He also enjoys talking about space exploration and robots, because in his view the only way forward for humanity is away from this planet, in metal bodies.
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